Embryo mortality and fetal loss at slaughter in gravid goats in the Sudano-Guinean zone of Cameroon

Abstract

This study was undertaken on a group of 503 pregnant goats of the Djallonke and Sahelian breed. The objective of the study was to identify luteal structures in the pregnant goats and to make a diagnosis of embryonic mortalities. Examination ex-vivo of the female genital tract allowed the observation of a gestative state. The diagnosis of the pregnancy corpus luteum took into account their number, the numerical presence and the left and right laterality of the fetuses. Quadruplets and triplets gestations showed respectively low frequencies (0.4% and 14.7%) compared to twin (54.7%) and single (30.2%) gestations. The left and right laterality of the pregnancy corpus luteum made it possible to note the presence of 1, 2 or 3 gestating corpus luteum on one or the other ovary, without however showing the presence of the quadruplets on an ovary. Laterality revealed cases of pregnancy in the left uterine horn (51.3%) and right uterine horn (48.7%) and losses in the left uterine horn (57.3%) and in the right uterine horn (42.7%). The apparent prolificity index was 1.8 (932/503) and the true prolificity index was 2 (1035/503). A total rate of embryonic mortality of 10% was obtained. The fetal death rate was 90% and economic losses were estimated at 21,420,000 CFA francs for a year. These important losses hamper goat productivity.

Key words: goats, embryonic mortalities, fetuses, financial losses, Cameroon.